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Author: William A. Jacobson

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William A. Jacobson

William A. Jacobson is a Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Securities Law Clinic at Cornell Law School.

He is a 1981 graduate of Hamilton College and a 1984 graduate of Harvard Law School. At Harvard he was Senior Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal and Director of Litigation for the Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project.

Prior to joining the Cornell law faculty in 2007, Professor Jacobson had a highly successful civil litigation and arbitration practice in Providence, Rhode Island, concentrating in investment, employment, and business disputes in the securities industry, including many high profile cases reported in leading newspapers and magazines.

Professor Jacobson has argued cases in numerous federal and state courts, including the Courts of Appeal for the First, Fifth and Sixth Circuits, and the Rhode Island Supreme Court.

Professor Jacobson has a national reputation as a leading practitioner in securities arbitration. He was Treasurer, and is a former member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, a professional organization of attorneys dedicated to protecting public investors. He frequently is quoted in national media on issues related to investment fraud and investor protection, and in the past has served as one of a small number of private practice attorneys who trained new arbitrators for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Professor Jacobson is co-author of the Securities Arbitration Desk Reference (Thomson-Reuters), updated annually.

Professor Jacobson is frequently quoted in the media on political and legal topics, has authored many Op-Eds in major publications, and appears on television and radio to discuss politics and the law.

A more complete listing of Professor Jacobson's professional background is available at the Cornell Law School website. The views expressed here are his own and not those of any employer or organization,

The best way to reach Prof. Jacobson is by e-mail here.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 22, 2009 7 Comments

My thoughts as the interview progresses:He says: Investment banking not like it was 20 years ago, when investment bankers only made 20 times what teachers made, not 200 times.I say: Are you kidding me? Remember Drexel and Michael Milkin? Remember the people who inspired the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 22, 2009 1 Comment

While liberal bloggers like Ezra Klein are busy attacking good people like Ann Althouse, and liberal reporters run a secret JournoList to make sure they have their stories straight, an American reporter is rotting in an Iranian jail.The full story is at And So It...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 21, 2009 2 Comments

The financial crisis seems hard to understand. How did we go from a robust economy to "the worst economy since the Great Depression"? (h/t Barry O)There are 27 visualizations which make things easier to understand. I like this one in particular (click on picture to...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 21, 2009 0 Comments

A large-scale car bomb attack outside a mall in Haifa, Israel, has been prevented after the car failed to fully detonate. According to reports, a small explosion alerted police, who then realized that the car was loaded with explosives. If the car had exploded outside...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 21, 2009 24 Comments

Ezra Klein, blogger for the "liberal" American Prospect, got caught by Politico coordinating his stories with other liberal bloggers and journalists. Exposed for being a journalistic fraud, Klein needed an enemy. He found Ann Althouse. Althouse, who has a very popular blog, could be considered...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 20, 2009 4 Comments

Note: This is a cross-post with Gay Patriot. I ask the question, they give the answer.---------------------------------------------------There is a peculiar, somewhat uniquely, Jewish phenomenon. It's called worrying about what is "bad for the Jews." Many have noted this phenomenon before, so I don't claim originality here.Groups...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 20, 2009 3 Comments

Richard Falk is a long-time anti-Israel (and often anti-American) polemicist. A retired Princeton professor, Falk has dedicated much of his life to blaming Israel and the United States for the world's woes, while coddling extremism everywhere else in the world. Not surprisingly, Falk also is...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 19, 2009 3 Comments

I was watching television when I saw a commercial for Crayola Color Wonder, a product which uses inks which only show up on special paper. This way, the kids can write all over your house and there will be no "mess." The commercial shows kids...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 19, 2009 0 Comments

Note: Cuomo's Press Release and The Indictment Are Posted BelowThis story is just breaking. Hank Morris, a top confidant of U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, has been indicted for pension fraud for using political connections to steer N.Y. State Pension Fund business for a fee:A political...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 18, 2009 9 Comments

I am pleased to introduce The Official Guide To Obama Kitsch.Kitsch is a word of Germanic origin which denotes something that is in poor taste, tacky, pretentious, cheap or trashy.In order to qualify, the product must (1) feature the name or likeness of His Honor;...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 18, 2009 0 Comments

I happened upon the following, which I hope you will enjoy as much as I did:Mr. Reagan tells the story of the time in 1981 when a senior admiral came to the White House to brief the President and Cabinet on maneuvers scheduled to begin...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 18, 2009 0 Comments

Money is being wasted as part of the bailouts, and Obama claims it's not his fault and he didn't know. This administration is falling apart, and all the White House spin machine can say is "It wasn't me."This isn't new. Among the things Obama also...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 18, 2009 3 Comments

Not that there's anything wrong with it. I just wish that they had come out for McCain prior to the election:How Robert Stacy McCain became irresistible to menHow Stacy McCain became irresistible to women...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 18, 2009 1 Comment

As if the UN's long history of coddling tyrants, and its hideous "Durban" anti-Israel bashes, were not enough, now this. The President of the UN General Assembly has ripped into the United States for "demonizing" Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad:UN General Assembly president Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann,...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 17, 2009 0 Comments

The centerpiece of Obama's energy plan is "alternative" energy, such as wind and solar power. Tens of billions of dollars in the "stimulus" package go towards these technologies. The viability of Obama's energy plan is called into question by Royal Dutch Shell's announcement that...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 17, 2009 4 Comments

Oh boy, has this administration become unhinged in its efforts to force through Obama's "bet the farm" economic plans.Rahm Emanuel runs anti-opposition campaigns from inside the White House against Rush Limbaugh to take down the leading opponent of Obama's economic plans. The White House coordinates...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 17, 2009 0 Comments

Pawtucket, RI, is just north of Providence. Pawtucket (pronounced "p-tuk-et" to those in the know) is an old mill town which has huge economic problems (as does the entire State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations). So what should the federal government do to help...

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